23/02/2026
Sri Lanka prides itself on being governed by law, not by press conferences. That principle was reaffirmed on 19th February 2026, when the Court of Appeal intervened in the escalating controversy over whether foreign tourists may lawfully drive tuk-tuks in Sri Lanka using International Driving Permits together with covering permits issued under Sri Lankan law.
In C.A. (Writ) 1154/25, Hon. Justice Dhammika Ganepola and Hon. Justice Adithya Patabendige granted Interim Orders preserving the existing legal framework and restoring the position that prevailed before media reports on or about 20th November 2025 suggested that foreign visitors could no longer drive tuk-tuks on the strength of International Driving Permits.
Sri Lanka is a Contracting State to the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic. The Convention is founded on reciprocity: member states recognise each other’s International Driving Permits to ensure uniform and predictable cross-border mobility. To give domestic effect to these obligations, Sri Lanka enacted regulations through Gazette No. 11,603 of 1958 under the Motor Car (Convention) Ordinance – regulations that remain valid and in force.
Under that statutory framework, a foreign visitor holding a valid International Driving Permit may lawfully drive in Sri Lanka upon obtaining a local covering permit issued either by the Department of Motor Traffic or by the Automobile Association of Ceylon, which is expressly designated by law for that purpose.
